South Korea Threatens War If North Korea Makes One More Provocation

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Gus Lubin
Business Insider
May 24, 2010

A d v e r t i s e m e n t

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South Korea’s Lee Myung-bak announced his retaliation plan for the attack on the Cheonan this morning in Seoul. Although restrained like he has been for the past two months, the president finally referred to the possibility of war:

“If our territorial waters, airspace or territory are militarily violated, we will immediately exercise our right of self-defense.”

Moving from “passive defense to proactive deterrence” is a significant shift for a country that seems to get pushed around by North Korea every year. Just this month South Korea fired warning shots when North Korean ships ventured across the border.

On the other hand, if Kim Jong-il were to refrain from lighting the powderkeg for a year or so, he’d be getting off easy. The rest of Lee’s retaliation involves a ban on sand and fish imports. South Korea will continue to share an industrial complex with North Korea and continue sending foreign aid across the border.